Integrative and Comparative Biology Advance Access originally published online on June 1, 2007
Integrative and Comparative Biology 2007 47(3):427-445; doi:10.1093/icb/icm046
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Seminal influences: Drosophila Acps and the molecular interplay between males and females during reproduction
Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Biotechnology Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
Correspondence: 1E-mail: mfw5{at}cornell.edu
Successful reproduction requires contributions from both the male and the female. In Drosophila, contributions from the male include accessory gland proteins (Acps) that are components of the seminal fluid. Upon their transfer to the female, Acps affect the female's physiology and behavior. Although primary sequences of Acp genes exhibit variation among species and genera, the conservation of protein biochemical classes in the seminal fluid suggests a conservation of functions. Bioinformatics coupled with molecular and genetic tools available for Drosophila melanogaster has expanded the functional analysis of Acps in recent years to the genomic/proteomic scale. Molecular interplay between Acps and the female enhances her egg production, reduces her receptivity to remating, alters her immune response and feeding behavior, facilitates storage and utilization of sperm in the female and affects her longevity. Here, we provide an overview of the D. melanogaster Acps and integrate the results from several studies that bring the current number of known D. melanogaster Acps to 112. We then discuss several examples of how the female's physiological processes and behaviors are mediated by interactions between Acps and the female. Understanding how Acps elicit particular female responses will provide insights into reproductive biology and chemical communication, tools for analyzing models of sexual cooperation and/or sexual conflict, and information potentially useful for strategies for managing insect pests.
From the symposium "Evolutionary and Functional Genomics of Sperm, Sperm Storage, and Fertilization" presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology, January 3–7, 2007, at Phoenix, Arizona.
![]()
CiteULike
Connotea
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
J. L. Mueller, J. R. Linklater, K. Ravi Ram, T. Chapman, and M. F. Wolfner Targeted Gene Deletion and Phenotypic Analysis of the Drosophila melanogaster Seminal Fluid Protease Inhibitor Acp62F Genetics, March 1, 2008; 178(3): 1605 - 1614. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. Wong, M. C. Turchin, M. F. Wolfner, and C. F. Aquadro Evidence for Positive Selection on Drosophila melanogaster Seminal Fluid Protease Homologs Mol. Biol. Evol., March 1, 2008; 25(3): 497 - 506. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
E. B. Dopman and D. L. Hartl A portrait of copy-number polymorphism in Drosophila melanogaster PNAS, December 11, 2007; 104(50): 19920 - 19925. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
C. M. Rylett, M. J. Walker, G. J. Howell, A. D. Shirras, and R. E. Isaac Male accessory glands of Drosophila melanogaster make a secreted angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ANCE), suggesting a role for the peptide-processing enzyme in seminal fluid J. Exp. Biol., October 15, 2007; 210(20): 3601 - 3606. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
T. Dottorini, L. Nicolaides, H. Ranson, D. W. Rogers, A. Crisanti, and F. Catteruccia A genome-wide analysis in Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes reveals 46 male accessory gland genes, possible modulators of female behavior PNAS, October 9, 2007; 104(41): 16215 - 16220. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||



